


of airplanes and shooting stars

by regn (hmickeys)



Series: where the heart is, i follow [1]
Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Angst, Childhood Friends, Coming of Age, Friends to Lovers, Hyunjin-centric, M/M, Unrequited Love, i lowkey cried while writing this, im so sorry, lapslock cause im lazy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2018-08-18
Packaged: 2019-06-29 06:21:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15723732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hmickeys/pseuds/regn
Summary: hyunjin is six when he meets the most annoying person ever.





	of airplanes and shooting stars

**Author's Note:**

> special thanks to keith (who motivated me when nobody else could, i love u)!
> 
> as expected, unbeta-ed, im sorry for any mistakes cause english isnt my first language lol

hyunjin is six when he meets the most annoying person ever.

it's not that he's overreacting or anything. he swears on his favorite blue toy car that he is not going to talk to this boy, but what welcomes him a while later is a plain feeling of defeat, laughing right in his face. hyunjin digs further into the sand, completely ignoring the fact that his plastic shovel cracked at the bottom minutes ago. there are more important things to get upset about.

"stop singing! you're annoying!" he half-shouts, pressing harder on his shovel. it eventually cracks, not resisting the pressure, and the boy laughs out loudly.

"my singing is pretty," the boy exclaims. "and your shovel is broken."

"ugh! i'm so mad," hyunjin pats the sand with his hand and looks at the other.

"hi so mad, i'm minho." a big smile appears on minho's face. he holds out his hand and waits for hyunjin to take it and shake them together, smile still blinding and somehow, _somehow_ promising.

and hyunjin does. 

 

-

what hyunjin learns six years later is that minho really likes cosmos and everything related to it. he has a really big collection of astronomy books in his house, mainly the ones with lots of illustrations. some simple notes lay between them, seeming abandoned in the chain of thoughts that sometimes overflow minho's mind. others seem like a graphic, chaotic output of every paragraph written in encyclopedies, but hyunjin doesn't understand them, no matter how hard he tries. maybe someday he will - he knows for sure that for now he won't take a chance in trying to grasp his head around this. he doesn't like science. 

within first glance, they don't seem like polar opposites - and to be honest, they aren't _completely_ different. it all starts to unravel when you get to know each one of them better. hyunjin isn't really the type to lose himself in between pages and old book covers, isn't really the type to study hard despite the fact that he definitely looks like it. his mother uses this argument against him in an almost ironic way, and although hyunjin takes to heart every word she says, he doesn't seem interested in changing this part of his life. 

(he trusts his old, scrapped diary with lots of lyrics written inside and basic song making skills for now. the rest will come naturally.)

-  
_You're words in my head,_

 

on one particular night minho decides to show hyunjin the most beautiful thing ever, as he titles it. the reasoning behind this is always something related to cosmos, and hyunjin doesn't even try to question any of those. there are some things that you just get used to hearing, and for hyunjin it's definitely minho's blabbering about planets, stars and other things he doesn't know the name of.

he arrives at the other boy's doorstep just after ten o'clock in the evening with a backpack stuffed with sweets and snacks (thank heavens he only has to cross the street to go his friend's house). minho laughs at the sight, because it happens every time they have a sleepover. it seems like hyunjin's mom just doesn't acknowledge the fact that minho's parents definitely have a well prospering fridge and a whole cupboard of unhealthy food too.

"alright, let's go," minho says, grabbing his own backpack. there's probably his telescope in here, accompanied by some notes and a huge bag of chips. his mom insists on taking two blankets even though they're only going to his backyard and the ground is still hot from being exposed to the sun all day long. they both agree. ( _i don't want any of you sick_ , she adds, disappearing back into the kitchen.) 

the walk is pretty long. minho's backyard is really huge, but in reality it's hyunjin that's constantly stopping to tie his shoelaces and slowing both of them down. he blames it on the broken aglets, but minho doesn't seem to mind, he even helps hyunjin when he bends down for the fourth time. when they finally arrive to their destined spot, minho takes a huge breath.

the sky is really clear today. no sight of any clouds. it's getting darker and darker every minute.

"how many _most beautiful_ things are there left for you to show me?" hyunjin asks, putting down their stuff. he takes the other backpack and unrolls their blankets, leaving them half-folded on the grass.

"come on, you're so mean!" minho scoffs and sits down. "i'm not going to invite you for a sleepover again."

hyunjin rolls his eyes. "okay, okay, i'm sorry. now please answer my very serious question."

"it's the last one! i promise!" the other boy says excitedly, reaching over for his telescope. "today's the day when a lot of meteors fall down. we're going to make lots of wishes."

"so you invited me over just to watch some rocks?" the younger sighs. he doesn't really understand the concept, but he's definitely _trying_ , you can tell. 

"you're dumb, they're shooting stars." minho crosses his arms on his chest, the telescope peeking out from under his left side. "you're supposed to make a wish every time you see one."

the conversation dies as soon as hyunjin says, "i'm not dumb, this whole thing is dumb."

 

summer wind blows into their faces calmly. it's not cold, it's not warm either. minho keeps playing with a tree branch which is understandable since they're both sitting under a weeping willow and almost every branch reaches the ground - that makes it really hard not to pick on them, although both of the boys know that it's not the best behavior towards the trees. hyunjin imagines a scenario where its branches fell down every time it saw a bad break up or someone weeping while thinking about why someone named the tree the way it's named. it doesn't seem real and logical though, so he abandons the the thought as soon as minho yells out that he sees the first meteor, poiting at the sky. 

twelve year old hyunjin looks at him and smiles. maybe a little too long, maybe a little too emotional, maybe a little too dreamy. twelve year old hyunjin just can't take his eyes off minho when the boy smiles (only sometimes). 

when he manages to do so, his gaze travels to the sky. there's a shooting star passing by just at this second, so hyunjin says the wish without thinking much, 

"i hope we're going to be friends forever!"

minho buries his face in his hands as soon as he hears it. 

"you're not supposed to say it out loud, jinnie-ah," he sounds upset. sad, almost. the most important thing is that he's not smiling anymore.

and hyunjin.. hyunjin just wants to see the smile back on minho's face, but it's impossible now.

-

they are back to talking normally just half an hour after that, but the feeling of disappointment still pulls sharply at a string of twelve year old hyunjin's heart.

 

-

at the age of thirteen, hyunjin learns what it's like to lose someone for the first time.

the memory of this person is still fresh in his mind, even after all this time. he remembers her soft voice, remembers her warm and welcoming gaze which spoke louder than any words she has said. he remembers her long, grey hair tied in a bun and the daily complaints about bad weather, it's all still very fresh, almost like nothing happened. 

but besides good memories, one bad always makes its way to the surface.

hyunjin doesn't expect anything when he's on his way back home. he eats his meal in silence, answering his mother's questions afterwards and sneaks out of the house. he crosses the road and steps into the old lady's home.

he always wondered why she was alone all of the time. she mentioned that she didn't have any children and hyunjin felt bad for the lady, so after their first meeting (right after he stole her heart with his sweetness and kindness) he decided to keep her company every day ever since he turned seven years old. after his mother's approval, of course. they were really close, and hyunjin still calls her his _grandma_ \- he never had his own, anyways.

the house is painfully quiet. hyunjin wonders if he should be worried, because it would be clearly the first day when the television is turned off. 

"granny?" he calls out while making his way upstairs. still no response.

when hyunjin opens the door to the lady's room, cold air welcomes his face. and then he sees it.

she's laying in her bed, face pale, almost white. 

the rest of this day passes by as a blur for hyunjin. he spends it at a nearby hospital with his mom, who doesn't want to tell him that doctors are sure the lady is not alive anymore, that she passed away in her sleep. she really thinks that hyunjin's not capable of thinking on his own, not capable of combining all of the facts together.

in between passing hours and quietly spoken words, the same thirteen year old hyunjin who promised himself not to cry ever in his life, sheds a tear.

-

minho suddenly stops coming over to their house. hyunjin really misses him, but doesn't say a word. he brushes it off and thinks that maybe the other boy has a lot of work to do at school. hyunjin's not that good of a friend, after all.

-  
_You're the knives in my heart._

 

the promise is broken once more on a surpsisingly cold, june evening. hyunjin is sitting alone on the sidewalk in front of his house, trying to enjoy summer wind blowing in his face. he's not afraid of cars passing by - it's a really calm road anyway, anyone hardly ever drives past there besides people who live on the same street.

he turns his head to the side and notices a huge, navy blue car that is packed with furniture and other things from minho's house. hyunjin figures it's probably the last time he's seeing the other boy and it makes his insides flip, heart hammering in his chest so loud hyunjin's sure anyone who came closer would hear it. little does he know, it actually makes his shirt flutter slightly with every beat.

hyunjin starts fiddling with his fingers when he sees minho walk towards him, and it suddenly feels like his biggest fear came true at the exact moment he saw them moving out the first piece of furniture. the feeling of abandonment, that is. the sudden change in his friend's behavior, his sudden absence on friday dinners. it all makes sense now - minho was busy with packing his stuff and erasing hyunjin from his life.

but minho doesn't look sad. he doesn't look hapy, either. his face would be almost neutral if not for his eyes that are slightly narrowed because of the sun.

"so, uh. i came to say goodbye." he starts, not even bothering to sit down beside hyunjin. "and to say sorry for ignoring you. mom said it would be better if i got used to you not being present in my life as soon as possible."

hyunjin looks up, utterly shocked by the boy's words, but he decides to speak from his heart this time. it's been too long since he's been speaking from his mind, and he's sure that he can make an exception for the last time.

the words feel heavy on his mouth, but they come out lightly, just like feathers. "i'm gonna miss you, you know. the wishes didn't come true."

"i know," minho smiles. "but keep making them. just pretend that the airplanes are shooting stars, it's not like you see a difference," he says in a cheerful tone wich makes hyunjin's heart shatter. he smiles back, though, as there's nothing more to say, and to be honest - he's pretty sure it will hold him back from crying right on the spot just for a little more.

from the other side of the road, minho hears his mother calling for him to come back cause they have to go.

"i have to go now, take care!" he waves to hyunjin, not bothering to wait for his response. he runs back to his father's car and gets in.

fourteen year old hyunjin doesn't register the way minho's lips tremble when he says these words. all he sees is a smile - the same smile that he treasures so much, that he is so focused on keeping in his memories for as long as possible. the same smile that made his heart beat so fast he couldn't breathe and the same one that eventually broke his heart.

"i know, goodbye." he whispers. he manages to wave back to minho when he sees him turn around in the car and form a heart with his palms.

and when hyunjin lowers his head, a single tear falls onto the sidewalk.

 

-

**Author's Note:**

> first of all.. im so sorry  
> this took me too long and i dont feel like its good anyways. the whole concept for this fic is inspired by the chorus of airplanes by bob and hayley; the cursive lyrics are from a thousand years by christina perri!  
> im hoping to finish the second part as soon as possible~


End file.
